Roy Disney was the nephew of Walt Disney, but the family's investments are not directly tied to the operation of The Walt Disney Co., which controlled the Angels from 1998-03.

Miller said Stanley Gold, the chief executive officer of Shamrock, is seriously exploring investing in the team along with the Disney family and other investors, including several in the Los Angeles area.

Gold has gone through the process of qualifying the investor group to make an initial bid by the Jan. 23 deadline, and the group is examining the team's financial records.

Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, who put the team in bankruptcy last year, agreed with Major League Baseball to sell the team by April 30, which coincides with the deadline for McCourt to pay former wife Jamie a $131 million divorce settlement.

Among other potential bidders are:

_ a group that includes former manager Joe Torre and is headed by real estate developer Rick Caruso.

_a group that includes former agent and current Chicago White Sox special assistant Dennis Gilbert, talk show host Larry King and Jason Reese of Imperial Capital.

_a group that includes former Dodgers general manager Fred Claire, former Oakland Athletics president Andy Dolich and former Dodgers batboy Ben Hwang, who brought in the financial backers.

_former Dodgers owner Peter O'Malley.

_a group that includes former Dodgers stars Orel Hershiser and Steve Garvey, and Joey Herrick of Natural Balance Pet Foods.

_Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.

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Lakers star Magic Johnson tweeted in early Dec. 2011 that he was joining with former Atlanta Braves executive Stan Kasten, wealthy investor Mark Walter and Washington Nationals president Stan Kasten in a group bid to buy the Dodgers.
On March 27, Dodgers owner Frank McCourt announced that Magic Johnson's group won the bid for the LA Dodgers.
NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 13: Magic Johnson attends 'The Mountaintop' Broadway opening night at The Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on October 13, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Getty Images)

On Dec. 27, it was reported that Steven Cohen, a multi-billionaire hedge fund manager, wants to own the Dodgers--and with the amount of money he has, he has a good chance. The Los Angeles Times reported Cohen's efforts to win the team: "He has engaged one of America's notable sports architecture firms to propose renovations to Dodger Stadium, allied himself with one of baseball's power brokers, secured the support of at least two prominent Angelenos and met with several major league owners."
On Mar. 18, the Times reported that Patrick Soon-Shiong, the richest man in LA, joined Cohen's bid.
On Mar. 27, Frank McCourt confirmed that Magic Johnson's group won the bid for the LA Dodgers.
Photo Credit: Robert Pitts, Landov

On the Jan. 23 bidding deadline, the Los Angeles Times reported rumors that St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke "has explored whether to bid for the Dodgers." As of yet, it is unconfirmed whether or not he submitted a bid.
Kroenke founded the Kroenke Group, a successful real estate development firm. He is married to Ann Walton Kroenke, the daughter of Wal-Mart cofounder Bud Walton.
In addition to the Rams, sports mogul Kroenke owns the Denver Nuggets, Colorado Rapids, Colorado Avalanche, Colorado Mammoth and is the majority shareholder of English football club Arsenal.
On Mar. 27, Frank McCourt confirmed that Magic Johnson's group won the bid for the LA Dodgers.
EARTH CITY, MO - JANUARY 17: St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke addresses the media during a press conference at the Russell Training Center on January 17, 2012 in Earth City, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)

On Feb. 8, the Los Angeles Times reported that billionaire owner of the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies, Michael Heisley, would bid on the Dodgers. However, on Feb. 27, the paper reported that Heisley had dropped out as a bidder.
Then, on Mar. 5, Heisley joined forces with Tony Ressler to reenter the bidding process together. Ressler is the co-founder of an L.A. investment firm.
On Mar. 23, Blackstone Advisory Partners, the investment bank brokering the sale, cut Heisley and Ressler from the bidding process.
Photo credit: Alamy

On Jan. 7, the Los Angeles Times reported that the family of the late Roy Disney has partnered with investment banker Stanley Gold in his bid to buy the Dodgers. The partnership was disclosed by an unnamed person, who commented, "They would guard the Dodger name the way they guard the Disney name."
The Walt Disney Company owned the Angels when the team became World Series Champions in 2002.
On Feb. 14, the Times reported that Major League Baseball will drop Gold's bid.
PHILADELPHIA, UNITED STATES: Stanley Gold (R), president and CEO of Shamrock Holdings, and Roy Disney (L), former vice chairman of the board of directors of the Walt Disney Company, hold a press conference to respond to the vote after the Walt Disney Company's annual meeting of the shareholders at the Pennsylvania Convention Center 03 March 2004 in Philadelphia, PA. The two started a campaign called 'Save Disney. Com' to replace Disney CEO Michael Eisner. AFP PHOTO/Timothy A. CLARY (Photo credit should read TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP/Getty Images)

On Jan. 10, unauthorized sources came forward to the Los Angeles Times to reveal that billionaire investor Tom Barrack is interested in placing a bid for the Dodgers.
Barrack is the head of Colony Capital which deals mostly in real estate investments. Forbes notes that the LA-based investor is the grandson of Lebanese immigrants and once loaned $24 million to photographer Annie Leibowitz to keep her afloat.
On Feb. 14, the Times reported that Major League Baseball will drop this bid.
In this Bloomberg Television interview from October 2010, Tom Barrack discusses his then recent acquisition of film company Miramax.

Major League Baseball's executive vice president, Joe Torre, resigned Wednesday in order to join a bid led by real estate developer Rick Caruso. In a press release, Torre commented, "In Rick I found a partner who understands consumers and fully appreciates that the Dodgers are a treasured LA institution... I am very excited about this new opportunity and also want to thank Commissioner Selig and Major League Baseball for providing me with invaluable baseball operations experience over the past 10 months."
As of February 23, Caruso and Torre are no longer in the running to become the next owners. Talks fell apart over McCourt's insistence that he maintain ownership of the stadium parking lots, reports the Los Angeles Times.
In this Oct. 3, 2010 file photo, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre watches a video tribute during his farewell ceremony after a baseball game with the Arizona Diamondbacks, in Los Angeles. Torre has resigned as Major League Baseball's executive vice president for baseball operations to join a group trying to buy the Los Angeles Dodgers. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

In early Nov., former Dodgers owner Peter O'Malley told the Los Angeles Times that he would like to "reconnect the team and the community" as owner again. Throughout McCourt's divorce, O'Malley had publicly called for McCourt to sell the team.
On Feb. 22, the Times reported that O'Malley had withdrawn his bid.
Former Dodger owner Peter O'Malley at a memorial service for Los Angeles Dodger baseball great Willie Davis, at DodgerStadium in Los Angeles Tuesday, March 16, 2010. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

In mid-Nov., as Forbes reported, former Dodgers general manager Fred Claire teamed up with former Dodgers batboy Ben Hwang and former Oakland Athletics president Andy Dolich to create their own bid for the team.
On Feb. 1, the Times reported that Fred Claire's group bid, without enough money, was no longer in the running.
Former Dodger general manager Fred Claire at a memorial service for Los Angeles Dodger baseball great Willie Davis, at DodgerStadium in Los Angeles Tuesday, March 16, 2010. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

10-time All-Star former Dodgers player Steve Garvey pleased fans in late April when he announced that he would join a group of investors bidding to buy the team. In early June, former Dodgers pitcher Orel Hershiser made it known that he would be joining Steve Garvey's bid, which also includes Joey Herrick of Natural Balance Pet Foods.
It was reported on Jan. 28 that this group was not selected to advance to the next round of bidding.
LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 13: Former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Orel Hershiser throws out the first pitch before the Dodgers take on the Philadelphia Phillies in Game Four of the National League Championship Series during the 2008 MLB playoffs on October 13, 2008 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban's bid for the Dodgers was confirmed on Dec. 1. Fans had been calling on him to "save the Dodgers" even before McCourt sold the team. Cuban had previously told reporters that he wasn't interested in buying because he thought the price, at at least $1 billion, was too high.
On Jan. 27, Cuban was eliminated from the first round of bidding.
DALLAS, TX - DECEMBER 25: Owner Mark Cuban of the Dallas Mavericks stands with the NBA trophy before a game against the Miami Heat on opening day of the NBA season at American Airlines Center on December 25, 2011 in Dallas, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

On Dec. 1, talk show host Larry King joined a Dodgers-desiring investment group led by Chicago White Sox executive and Beverly Hills insurance agent Dennis Gilbert. Both men are longtime Dodgers season-ticket holders and had been critical of Frank McCourt. Their group also includes Jason Reese of Imperial Capital.
On Jan. 27, Gilbert and his co-bidders' bid was eliminated from the first round of bidding.
NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 14: TV personality Larry King honored at the 2011 Friars Club Testimonial dinner gala at the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers on November 14, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images)

Time Warner Cable confirmed their interest in entering a bid for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday, reports the Los Angeles Times.
LA Times reporter Steve Dilbeck, who broke the story, notes that the estimated cost of the team is less than half the $4 billion it would cost to buy television rights for their games, so this bid could be a smart move for the television cable company.
Glenn Britt, CEO of Time Warner Cable, at the annual Allen & Co. Media summit in Sun Valley, Idaho, Thursday, July 8, 2010. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)